Once again the Cowboys look great on paper, with Ben Hannant joining a quality pack, Michael Morgan backing up from a superb year at fullback and the game's best playmaker Johnathan Thurston pulling the strings. Co-captains Thurston and Matt Scott will lead from the front again in NRL Fantasy, while yet another dummy-half option has been recruited in a bid to take the club to the next level.

Fantasy Guns

Johnathan Thurston ($484,000) – Coming off a Dally M Medal-winning season in which he topped the competition's try assist and line-break assist tallies, Thurston will again be in high demand as a mid-50s scorer in the halves. He also scores tries and kicks goals – he was the top pointscorer in the NRL last year – and thrives when the Cowboys are firing on all cylinders in attack.

Matt Scott ($471,000) – Australia's premier prop was superb for North Queensland last year and is among the most solid front-row options in Fantasy – despite not having the blockbuster tackle-busting appeal of an Andrew Fifita or George Burgess. Gets big metres, makes a lot of tackles, and does the job week in, week out. Like Thurston, a safe-as-houses option for your squad – although, like Thurston, he will miss at least a couple of games over the Origin period on Maroons duty.

Wild Card

Lachlan Coote ($137,000) – Coote missed last season through injury after a quiet campaign for the Panthers the year before, meaning he starts this year at a very low $137,000 price. But will he play? The man recruited to replace Matt Bowen at fullback at the end of 2013 has been usurped in that role by Michael Morgan, who was sensational in the No.1 jersey for the Cowboys last year. Coote can also do a job at five-eighth, but chances are he'll be biding his time waiting for a place to open up in the backline when the season begins.

Potential Cash Cow

Jake Granville ($189,000) – Granville started twice and played six games off the bench for Brisbane last season, but when tireless rake Andrew McCullough was in the Broncos side there wasn't much need for Granville to play a significant role. Things could be different at Granville's new club the Cowboys, where Rory Kostjasyn, Ray Thompson and Cameron King have been battling for the starting hooker job in recent times. Kostjasyn won the battle last year and should start in the No.9 again this season, but the signing of Granville suggests the Cowboys still haven't settled on a pair of rakes and the ex-Bronco should at least get more chances off the bench – if he doesn't play his way into the starting side.